Did you recently receive a ballot in the mail for the presidential primary? Great, but were you also aware that Colorado holds precinct caucuses every two years for the essential business of the political parties?
The Sopris Sun recently spoke with Garfield County chairs — Debbie Bruell of the Democrats and Gregg Rippy of the Republicans — about the importance of voters participating in precinct caucuses.
As of last June, 47% of Colorado’s active registered voters are “unaffiliated,” the highest share of any June on record. However, since precinct caucuses are strictly a function of the political parties, to be eligible to participate, you must be registered as affiliated with either the Republican or Democratic party.
The 27 precincts within Garfield County bring political participation down to the neighborhood level. “It is grassroots at its lowest level, but with that being said, it requires engagement,” Rippy explained.
Who, when, where and how
The Garfield County Republicans will hold caucuses in-person on March 7 at 7pm (check-in starts at 6pm) at five locations: Carbondale, Glenwood Springs, New Castle, Rifle and Battlement Mesa. They will hold their county assembly at Rifle High School on March 23 at 10am.
On Saturday, March 9, the Garfield County Democrats will meet via Zoom to hold their precinct caucuses, which will move immediately into its county assembly. The start time is 1pm, with attendees logging in between 12:15 to 12:45pm to verify voter registration status.
There are different eligibility requirements by party for individuals under the age of 18. A pre-registrant affiliated with the Republican party who is 17 years old on the date of the caucus (March 7) and will be 18 on the date of the next general election (Nov. 5) may vote at the precinct caucus. A pre-registrant who is affiliated with the Democratic party and is 16 years old or older may vote at the caucus.
Candidate selection
By attending the precinct caucus and then participating in the county assembly, party members can show their support for a specific Garfield County commissioner candidate and participate in the selection process for June 25 primary election candidates.
“[The precinct caucus] has the opportunity to be inclusive, but if people choose not to participate because they’re either fearful, they don’t know what it’s like … then they’re left out of a very important part of the election cycle, which is determining who the candidates are,” Rippy said.
Delegates will be able to shape the primary election ballot by selecting candidates for Colorado House District 57, Colorado Senate District 5, U.S. Congressional District 3 and the at-large position for the University of Colorado Board of Regents.
“The caucus system and the assembly system is one way that a candidate’s name gets placed on the ballot,” Bruell added.
Precinct leaders elected
Another bit of business at the precinct caucus is for each precinct to elect individuals who will serve a two-year term as precinct organizers and block captains, as they’re called in the Democratic party, or as the Republican party refers to them: precinct committee members.
Once again, caucus activities differ slightly by party.
“At the caucus, we will elect people to be precinct organizers, and we ask who would like to serve as election judges,” Bruell shared.
The importance of leaders at the precinct level is vital, regardless of your party affiliation.
“Choosing precinct leaders is one of the most important functions that occurs at a precinct caucus. You are selecting people who are going to be leaders within your precinct. We ask that they get to know the registered voters in their precinct. … They are going to be the point persons for get-out-the-vote and face-to-face interactions with voters,” Rippy shared.
To pre-register for the March 7 Republican caucuses, go to www.caucus.cologop.org. Upon registering, you will receive your precinct location. For a list of precinct locations, visit www.tinyurl.com/GarCoGOPprecincts For the March 9 Democratic caucus and county assembly, go to www.garcodems.org